The political future of Spain also concerns Latin America, since the outcome of the elections is not only the interests of Spanish companies at stake, but also the so-called multilatinas, which have found a gateway to the European Union in the Iberian country.
“Spanish FDI reaches €153,408 million (January-September 2022), with Mexico and Brazil as main destinations ahead of Chile, Argentina, Peru and Colombia1,” according to the Institute for Economic Studies of the Council of Ibero-American Entrepreneurs.
Spanish investment in Latin America is located in sectors such as finance, telecommunications, energy, oil and gas.
Meanwhile, the federation adds that the investments of multinational companies in Spain “currently amount to 63,332 million euros, 12.1% of foreign direct investment.” Thus, the region ranks as the fourth largest investor after France, the United States and the United Kingdom.
However, during the pandemic, some Spanish companies chose to withdraw their investments from Latin America, in the midst of the economic crisis caused by the closures and suspension of economic activities.
When asked about this, the chief economist of the Spanish bank BBVA, Juan Ruiz, told France 24 that despite the isolated cases, Latin America continues to generate profits for Spanish companies.
At the same time, the analyst considered that, regardless of the election results, “investment in Latin America in general remains attractive for Spanish companies”.
The links between Spain and Latin America go beyond investment. There is also a strong trade exchange with Latin America exporting about 17,000 million euros annually, with a slight advantage over this European country.
